Today is a very special day for children all over the area. For many of them, it is the day they will return to school for another year of learning, mental stimulation, and social development. For others, it represents those first steps into the world of academia, the beginning of their educational journey. For some, it will mean a transition to a new school, a new type of educational setting. For all of them, it means the end of summer vacation. And for all their stay-at-home or work-at-home moms, it means OUR vacation is just beginning.
Not really. But yeah, a little bit.
As I’ve done every year since they were in preschool, I had to get the traditional first-day shots. This year was a little different as we weren’t able to provide new clothes, backpacks or lunchboxes, but our kids didn’t seem to mind. Last year’s stuff was still in great condition and after washing a few times looked *almost* like new…if you didn’t look too closely. Crisana actually found an outfit in her closet she had never worn, and decided that would be her “new” first day of school dress. Trey, on the other hand, picked out a favorite shirt he’s had since he was in THIRD GRADE and that by some miracle of God still fits him. He did, however, wear shoes that have sat in his closet all summer long, and a “newish” pair of shorts he’s only had since spring.
It’s hard to believe that we now have a middle-schooler in the house. But there he is, ready and excited for his first day of being an Evans Middle School Panther.
It’s quite a task getting all that middle-school gear packed up and carry-able. Between a backpack, lunch box, stuff sack for gym clothes, binder, and eventually a trombone, a child needs about 4 arms or a porter to carry it all. Trey has his system worked out, though, and we watched as he “sherpa’d up” to go out to the car.
Our third-grader was also incredibly excited to head off to her first day of school – though being a McGowen Maverick is no longer a novelty to her.
Though we are still in the throes of lice treatment, we found a way to make her hair look special for the first day…despite the nasty egg-removing gel. And after the necessary driveway pictures, we headed off for our first stop on the Tour-de-Carpool-Lines. We arrived and parked across the street, giving us the opportunity for a marquee shot:
As he’s done every year since the school opened, Mr. McGowen was on hand to greet the students as they entered. With a kind word of welcome and a handshake for every child and parent, he is truly a treasure. Graciously, he allowed us to capture this moment, though the picture seems to be missing something without Mr. Forsyth.
Since we’d already gotten the beginning-of-the-year teacher-student photo, we didn’t need to take that one again. Instead, we got the action photo of unpacking the backpack at her desk.
And of course, at her locker. Apparently *this* is the face you get when you realize your locker is one of the few that doesn’t have a name on it because your teacher ran out of the cute little name strips and so it just has a post-it note with your number.
Since elementary school starts a full 45 minutes before middle school, we had some time to kill, which we did…with DONUTS! We started Trey off right with a healthy dose of sugar, fat, and processed carbs, washed down with some chocolate milk…and took this opportunity to get a first-day shot without embarrassing him in front of all his peers.
We did escort Trey into his school – from a distance, mind you – to ensure he knew how to open his locker and assist him with getting his binder set up and prepared for class. But very quickly we were encouraged to leave – no hugs or kisses or pictures, thankyouverymuch Mom – as he headed confidently off to first period.
And as Matt and I headed off for a few hours of “just us” time, we realized just how lonely and quiet vacation can be sometimes.